Harry Takes Action
by GTheFinder
Summary: Harry goes on a trip to Diagon Alley and meets England's hottest teenaged model. He is immediately entranced by her gorgeous charms. He also draws the line on just how much Dumbledore influences him, and he distances himself from Ron and Hermione. HarryOC
1. Chapter 1

5:15 P.M. on Friday, June 16th.

That was when Harry was finally supposed to be able to leave the Dursleys for the summer and get picked up by the Order. It was now almost midnight! Harry didn't know whether he should be angry or worried. On one hand, he was mad that the Order had so little respect for his time that they felt that they could give him approximations and then could come whenever they wanted. On the other hand, the Order had never been late before; so there was probably something seriously wrong if no one had arrived yet.

Uncle Vernon's loud bellowing about "freaks" and "your kind" interrupted Harry from these musings, because that could only mean one thing: wizard visitors! Harry grabbed his trunk and ran down the stairs. He saw quite the gang assembled. There was Alastor "Mad-Eye" Moody, Remus Lupin, Arthur Weasley, and Albus Dumbledore.

As soon as Harry saw what was going on, he started to laugh lightly. If you had no idea what was happening, you would find the scene comical, too. In one corner, Moody was saying something about blasting away one of Vernon's body parts. Remus was grabbing at Moody's cloak, unsuccessfully trying to calm him down. Mr. Weasley was standing in the corner, acting as if nothing out of the ordinary was taking place. (Granted, if you lived with the twins, these types of events might not be that uncommon.) Dumbledore was on the other side of the room trying to placate Aunt Petunia, who was looking at Dumbledore as if he had a purple beard. But the real reason why Harry started laughing was because, while all of this was going on, Dudley was ignorantly sitting on the couch, eating popcorn, and watching TV.

When Harry started to make a noise, everyone turned around and looked at him. Dumbledore was the first to speak and said, "Good evening, Harry. I trust that you are prepared to leave?"

Harry nodded his head in the affirmative and asked, "Sir, is there anything wrong? Is everybody okay?"

"Yes, dear boy. Everyone is fine. The Wizengamot meeting ran much longer than I had planned; and I find that it is quite difficult for the Chief Warlock to leave early. Come then, we'll be on our way."

"Good evening, Mr. Dursley, Mrs. Dursley. Until we cross paths again," Dumbledore said to Harry's "family." Harry grabbed his things and bolted out the door without as much as a backwards glance towards his aunt and uncle. Moody, Lupin, and Mr. Weasley soon followed.

"Harry, I have planned to transport you to Headquarters for the remainder of the summer. Would that be suitable for you?"

"Yes, professor," Harry responded.

"Very good. I have contacted the Ministry and I have _legally _secured portkeys for us." Dumbledore said with a wink, and then he grabbed what looked like a stapler from his robes and handed it to Harry. "Everyone please put a hand on this fascinating lead dispenser." It was a tight fit, and again Harry found himself wanting to laugh at the situation. Before he had the chance, Dumbledore waved his wand and Harry found himself at the entrance to Grimmauld Place.

"Harry, it's so good to see you. I've been worried sick about you." Mrs. Weasley appeared out of nowhere, hugging Harry. "How have you been? Have those muggles been feeding you properly?"

Mrs. Weasley gave Harry a very scrutinizing stare which made him feel uneasy. "Erm, I've been fine Mrs. Weasley. Really, I am."

The rest of the Weasley clan proceeded to greet Harry. "Harry, mate, how are you doin'?" the twins said in eerie synchronization.

"Hey, how have you been holding up mate, did you get a chance to jinx those awful muggles?" Ron said, with a smile on his face. It soon vanished, however, when Mrs. Weasley whacked him on the back of his head.

"Ronald Weasley, don't you dare talk about anyone like that. Don't give Harry any awful ideas. I swear, you're such a horrible influence on the boy."

"That's all right, Mrs. Weasley. I really don't mind." Harry interrupted. Ron shot Harry a grateful smile and Harry turned his eyes to the last member of the Weasley clan, Ginny.

"Hey, Ginny. How has your summer been?"

"Hi, Harry. Pretty good. How about yours?" She awkwardly approached Harry, unsure of whether or not to give him a hug. She decided to play it safe and stuck her hand out. Harry, fully aware of Ginny's lingering crush on him, approached her and enveloped her in a hug.

"It's good to see you, Gin." When Harry let her go, he saw that Ginny's face was as red as her hair. She mumbled something about having to go check on the chickens and quickly left the room. As Harry looked around, he saw that all the occupants of the room were smiling at him. Then it dawned on him. They thought he liked Ginny! Sure, he _liked _Ginny, but not in that way. He liked her in the 'Ron's little sister' way, not a romantic one. He realized that he might have been sending out the wrong signals to her; however, he wasn't going to worry about that problem right now.

"Harry, I have some good news for you. We are planning to go on a trip to Diagon Alley tomorrow afternoon. We are going to meet Hermione there at two. It's almost midnight and I know you've had a busy day, but do you think you're up to it?"

"I feel fine Mrs. Weasley. I'd love to come. Who's all going?"

"Well, since tomorrow is Saturday, Fred and George decided to take the day off from the shop. Ron and Ginny and myself will be coming. I believe that the headmaster has set it up so that five guards will also be coming. He doesn't want to take any risks. I think it's going to be Remus, Tonks, Kingsley, Alastor, and I think Albus talked Minerva into coming along, too."

"All right, it sounds like fun. What are we going to do in Diagon Alley? I didn't think that the school lists had come out yet."

"No, they haven't. Albus figured that it would do you some good to get out and have some fun. How does that sound?"

"Pretty good. What time are we going to wake up?"

"You'll need to wake up at eleven, have a late breakfast and then get ready to go. You should probably get to bed now. In fact, all of you should. We've got a busy day tomorrow."

Harry, with Ron's assistance, managed to carry his trunk up to his room. He quickly changed into something comfortable to sleep in, talked to Ron for a couple minutes, and then went to bed thinking about his trip to Diagon Alley the following day.

A/N: So what did you think of the first chapter? By the way, this will _not _be a Harry/Ginny fic, there are enough of those out there, and I will try to write about non-traditional pairings. (Probably Harry/OC) Please leave a review. Thanks!


	2. Chapter 2

1Harry was the last one to wake up on Saturday morning. He didn't take his clock out of his trunk yet, but he could tell that it was sometime around mid-day, judging by the blinding light of the sun coming through the windows.

He dug in his trunk for some clothes to wear to Diagon Alley and settled for a black t-shirt and a pair of dark blue jeans. He grabbed one of his towels and took a quick shower. After taking a look at himself in the mirror, he knew (although he wouldn't admit this to anyone) that he was quite the stud.

He walked down the hall and entered the loud kitchen. There he saw the most of the Weasleys assembled (Mr. & Mrs. Weasley, Fred & George, Ron & Ginny) along with his five guards for the day: Remus Lupin, Kingsley Shacklebolt, Nymphadora Tonks, Alastor Moody, and his head of house, Minerva McGonagall. Harry greeted the others and took the only seat left at the table, between Fred and Ginny.

Mrs. Weasley said, "It's good you're awake, Harry dear. We're running a little bit late, it's almost 1:15. We all thought that we should let you get some sleep. We're going to meet Hermione at the Leaky Cauldron at around 2:00, so we still have some time for breakfast. Albus arranged for port-keys to leave at exactly 1:55. Anyway, what would you like for brunch?"

"Some cereal would be fine, Mrs. Weasley."

"Are you sure Harry, wouldn't you want anything heavier?"

"No, I'm good, I'll take whatever cereal you have, Mrs. Weasley."

"Such a polite young man. You lot ( pointing at Ron, Fred, & George) could learn a lot from him."

She opened one of the cabinets and pulled out a box of Lucky Charms. Harry noticed that there were about fifty other boxes of Lucky Charms sitting right behind it. _I guess it's true then, _Harry thought to himself, _they must be magically delicious!_

After eating and talking to the others for a while, it was soon time for Harry and the gang to go to Diagon Alley. Mrs. McGonagall pulled out about a dozen pieces of chocolate and handed them to each of the occupants of the room.

She said, "Fred, George, Don't eat them! Everyone hold on to your chocolate. On the count of three, we're going to go. One, two….three!" and with that they were all transported to the entrance of the Leaky Cauldron.

Hermione was at one of the tables in the back right corner of the pub with her parents. Harry and the rest of the gang went up to them and started talking.

"Hi, Harry, how have you been doing?" she said as she pulled Harry into a hug. This didn't escape both Ron and Ginny's attention, and both of their faces turned an identical angry red.

"…Erm…" Ron fake-coughed, but it was enough to get Hermione's attention and have her release Harry.

"Hi, Hermione."

"Hi, Ron."

The tension between Hermione and Ron became very uncomfortable until McGonagall broke the silence, "Well, we better break off into two groups. If all of us were traveling together, we would draw attention to ourselves. How about Harry, Ron, Fred, & George be one group; Kingsley and Remus can accompany them. We'll meet back here at 6:00. Understood? Now, the rest of you, let's come over here and decide where we want to go first."

"Let's check out Quality Quidditch Supplies," Ron said. The rest of the group readily agreed.

"Harry, come over here and check out the latest new broom. It's the Magnum 72!"

"Wow!" Harry said to appease Ron, secretly thinking that his Firebolt could destroy the Magnum.

"Guess how much it costs, Harry?"

" I dunno, Ron. Ten thousand galleons."

"Nope. Twelve thousand. That's half of what most people make in a year! How do they ever sell these things. Did you know that…"

Harry was growing tired of listening to Ron babble on about the Magnum 72. Sure, he loved brooms and Quidditch, but even _he _could only take so much constant Quidditch talk.

Needing a bit of fresh air and not wanting to distract the others, Harry stealthily snuck out the door. He walked down Diagon Alley for a couple of minutes and decided to enter the Diagon-Alley branch of Honeydukes.

Sitting on a bench across the street was Stacy Clearwater, the most attractive 16 year-old female model in Great Britain. She had slightly longer than shoulder length blonde hair, blue eyes (of course!), and intoxicating curves. Everywhere she went heads turned.

When she first arrived at Diagon Alley, she was mobbed by her fans and mostly male admirers. After getting her guards to distract them, she was able to disappear for a short while. She found a bench across from Honeydukes where she thought that she could sit unnoticed.

That was when she noticed a stunningly handsome boy enter Honeydukes. Using her 20/20 vision, she was able to see a lightning-shaped scar on his forehead. Surely he couldn't be…Harry Potter?

As she quickly thought about him, she came to a conclusion: he would be the _perfect _boyfriend for her. He was extremely famous, amazingly handsome, insanely rich, and from what she heard, very nice. What more could a girl want?

She was hoping that her manager had told her the truth when he said that she could have any guy in England!

That was when she decided to make her move and got up and walked across the street to Honeydukes.

Harry was looking at the chocolate frog's section when a hand tapped his shoulder. He turned around and saw the most beautiful girl he'd ever seen! He looked the blonde minx up and down and took a big gulp.

"Erm, hi" was all Harry could come up with.

"Hi. My name's Stacy Clearwater." She then looked pointedly at Harry waiting for him to introduce himself.

"My name's Harry Potter." Stacy tried not to show recognition at the name, she had read in an article once that he didn't like talking about his fame, and she could certainly understand why!

"So Harry, would you like to meet for a drink at the Leaky Cauldron later?"

"Uhh..Yeah, what time would be good for you?"

"How about we meet at 6:00? That would give us some time to get to know each other."

"All right, that sounds good."

"Bye Harry." And with that Stacy was out the door.

Harry didn't have time to think about what had just happened as he realized that he needed to get back to Quality Quidditch Supplies before he was missed. He snuck back into the store and everything seemed normal.

Fred and George were hunched over a Quidditch cleaning kit talking quietly. Ron was looking at his beloved Magnum 72 and reading every word about it. Kingsley and Remus were even distracted; they were looking at the old Cleansweep 15 and talking about the "good ol' days." _Stellar security! _

Harry walked back up to Ron and rejoined that conversation. Not skipping a beat, Ron said, "Look at this, each broom is _hand-carved, _do you have any idea how long that takes Harry? It taken them a month to just carve one of these brooms! That's crazy!"

"Yes, you are." Harry said, but as he suspected, Ron wasn't paying attention; he was just nodding his head.

The gang finally left Quality Quidditch Supplies and continued touring the shops. The went into almost every shop in Diagon Alley when Remus pointed out that it was 5:45 and that they should go back to the Leaky Cauldron.

Harry was so excited about his meeting with the gorgeous blonde that he didn't think about who else would be at the Leaky Cauldron at 6:00. He was screwed! He had no idea how he was going to handle this situation. All he could do was pray that this would somehow work out ok, although he strongly doubted it.

A/N: Stacy is not going to be a Mary-Sue. We're going to find out that she has more problems than Harry could imagine! Please review and tell me what you think about this story. I'd appreciate it. Thanks.


	3. Chapter 3

1When everyone returned to the Leaky Cauldron from the fun excursion through Diagon Alley, Professor McGonagall was the first to speak up, "Let's have dinner here before heading back. Does that sound ok with everyone?"

Everyone nodded their heads in the affirmative as they began to take their seats. After repositioning the tables so that they could sit with each other, Harry realized that it was almost 6:00. He grabbed a seat and soon Ginny rushed to his right side to sit next to him. Hermione sat on his left side; Fred was sitting directly across from him, and Ron was sitting diagonally to his right.

They talked about their days' events and the girls talked about their purchases, quickly running out of new things to talk about. It was 6:10. Maybe she wouldn't come, Harry thought.. He didn't know whether or not to be glad that Stacy wasn't there yet. He was happy because if she didn't show up, he could avoid a confrontation and awkward conversations thereafter with Hermione, Weasleys, and the Order. But on the other hand, he couldn't help but feel sad that he might lose the chance to meet such a nice and breathtakingly beautiful girl.

"Hey, that's Stacy Clearwater." Fred said.

George squinted his eyes and took a hard look, "Yep, mate, you're right. Now, she's a babe. I wouldn't mind…"

Harry couldn't believe that Fred and George knew who she was. Harry quickly turned around, expecting to see her, but instead saw a picture of her on a poster drinking a butterbeer. He couldn't believe it, she was famous! That would make things even harder. Not only would he have to explain away having a drink with a beautiful girl, but a beautiful girl who was famous for doing butterbeer ads.

"So, Harry, I noticed your gaze lingered on that vixen for a couple of extra seconds. Does little ickle Harrykins have a crush?" Fred said.

At this, both Harry _and Ron's _faces turned red. This did not escape the twin's attention.

"Does ickle Ronnikins have a crush on her, too? How cute?" George said.

Ginny took this moment to speak up, "I can't believe all of you! How could you possibly like that wench? Do you have any idea how mean she is? I read in _Teen Witch Weekly _that she is… like so mean to people…"

Hermione also surprisingly had something to add, "She also uses all of the boys she dates. She's had seven boyfriends in the last two months! That's almost a boy a week! She's a real witch with a B."

Harry couldn't believe what he was hearing. Ginny and Hermione already hated this girl they'd never met. Why? Because of some things they had read in _Teen Witch Weekly, _and if Harry was guessing correctly, probably a little jealousy. Harry _would definitely never _judge a girl based on what some stupid magazine said, he had firsthand experience on just how bad the media could be. He was slammed all over the _Daily Prophet _over saying that You-Know-Who had come back, and _all _of the things they printed about him weren't true... Harry again looked at the clock; 6:15. She probably wasn't coming...

Several minutes later, the door to the Leaky Cauldron opened. The girl that entered went unnoticed. The occupants of the bar were Harry & Company, Tom the bartender, and six witches and warlocks talking to each other in deep discussion.

She spotted Harry at the table and began to approach him. As she walked up to him, she caught the attention of the half that was facing her. Fred, George, and Ron sat with their mouths gaping open and their eyes staring at her unblinkingly. Harry, of course, was not aware of the bar's newest occupant.

She tapped Harry on the shoulder and said, "Hi, Harry. Sorry I'm late, it was hard to get away."

Everyone at the table recognized Stacy Clearwater as "Britain's Hottest Teen Model"; and none of them liked her with the exception of Ron, Fred, and George who liked her for her physical appearance. They all stared at Harry unbelievingly. Hermione and Ginny soon shot _Stacy_ jealous stares. Ron, Fred, and George shot _Harry _jealous glances. Mrs. Weasley couldn't believe her eyes, Harry was certainly not 'that type of guy.' As Remus surveyed the scene, he realized that Harry was less like James than he thought. Alastor Moody's first thoughts were "she's probably a death-eater." Kingsley wanted to pat Harry on the back for the "nice pick-up."

Minerva McGonagall wasn't sure what she should do. Should she extend an invitation to this girl to eat with them? Albus usually handled these types of problems; as she was usually in his presence. She would never admit this to anyone, but even she read _Teen Witch Weekly_ and didn't like this girl one bit. She was also worried about what this girl might do to Harry.

While everyone was still in shock, Harry stood up and said, "Would you guys excuse me for a minute. I'm going to have a drink with Stacy real quick." Under normal circumstances, one, if not all of the adults would have objected to this, but they were all too shocked by what had just happened to say anything. Harry came across as an extremely shy guy to everyone he met and none of the adults present could imagine him going around with a girl like this. Harry and Stacy took a seat next to each other at the bar.

Stacy looked slightly sad, "They don't like me, do they, Harry."

"Well, erm, you see, they read some things about you in _Witch Weekly _and they…" Harry trailed off, not sure what to say without offending Stacy.

"Well, I have to admit, I haven't been the nicest to everyone I've met. Don't you hate it when people come up to you all the time expecting you to be their…I don't know…puppets or something. Then, they go and tell the nearest reporter, and he'll exaggerate the story, and the next thing you know, I'm reading a headline that says, "Teen Model Beats Up The Boy-Who-Lived in Diagon Alley."

Harry couldn't help but smile a little at this. This girl certainly seemed incapable of being mean to anyone. And she had a sense of humor. What would a girl like that want to be doing with a guy like him?

"So, Stacy, where do you go to school?"

"Nowhere."

Harry's eyes bugged out at this before Stacy quickly continued, "That is, my mom hires someone to tutor me when I'm not working. My hours are a little more flexible than the standard 8:00-3:00 like at Hogwarts."

"So what type of work are you doing now?"

"Well, I have a photoshoot next week for some Honeydukes candy. That should be fun. So how do you like Hogwarts, Harry?"

"It's pretty cool. Quidditch is fun. The classes aren't too bad. The people there are pretty nice."

"I bet they are." Stacy said looking over at the empty seat where Harry had been previously comparing herself to Hermione and Ginny. "They've got nothing on me," she thought.

"So, Harry, are you like, dating one of those girls?"

Harry knew who she was talking about but nevertheless turned and looked at Hermione and Ginny. He noticed that no one at the table had continued their conversation from when he left and they were all still looking at him.

Harry turned back to Stacy and said, "Nah, they're just friends of mine. Neither one of them is my type."

"What is your type then, Harry?"

Harry thought that the room had just gotten about fifty degrees warmer. He didn't say anything for a few moments trying to think of something witty to reply with. At that moment, he had never been so happy to see Professor McGonagall in his life.

"Excuse me, Mr. Potter, but I have talked to the Headmaster and he feels that it is time to depart."

"No." Harry replied.

"I was expecting that response Mr. Potter and Professor Dumbledore is on his way. Let's not make this difficult. It is late and we must be getting back."

Dumbledore entered the bar, caught sight of Harry, and quickly approached him. He knew from his years of working with him that yelling at him was not a good idea. He was always able to connect with Harry by using a gentle approach. Minerva had made him fully aware of the troubled girl that he was sitting with.

"Ah Harry, it is so good to see you. It is getting late now and we must return _home. _We can sort this all out when we get back."

Dumbledore turned to leave, fully expecting Harry to leave with him, when he heard a one-word reply, "No thanks, Professor."

The whole room gasped, even Stacy. _No one, I mean no one, ever says **no **to Dumbledore. _

"I'm sorry, Harry. You must not have heard me correctly. This is unfortunately not a request."

"I was fully aware of that Professor and my answer is still the same. I'm not done here yet, but I'll let you know when I am, ok?"

The mouths of Stacy, Hermione, the Weasleys, and the Order all dropped. _There are just some unwritten rules, there are just some things that YOU DON'T DO, and talking to the Hogwarts Headmaster like that was one of them. _

Everyone's eyes turned to Dumbledore's awaiting his next action.

**A/N: That was a pretty quick update. Please let me know what you think.**


	4. Chapter 4

1Everyone was shocked by Harry's actions throughout the day. First of all, he apparently knew one of the hottest girls in Great Britain, Stacy Clearwater, winner of _Witch Weekly's Hottest Girl Under Twenty Award. _Even though the award had only been given out for the past twelve years, Stacy was the youngest girl to win it, at the tender age of sixteen. However, it came at a price, the same magazine that had given her the award had been criticizing her as of late for her amorous affairs with various men. The magazine had also added that she was completely rude and even hostile to waiters, shopkeepers, and other laborers that she would encounter throughout the day.

What all the Weasleys, Hermione, and the various members of the Order present couldn't figure out was how Harry knew this girl. Dumbledore kept a pretty close watch on Harry, and it would seem impossible for him to meet a high-profile teen model without any of them knowing about it. As far as they knew, he had made no friends from his previous "muggle" life with the Dursleys, since Harry once told them that Dudley would beat up anyone who would try and talk to him. After one or two people tried, the rest of them saw the results and decided to leave _that kid_ alone. Also, he pretty much didn't go out anywhere other than to Diagon Alley during his summers at the Burrow or Grimmauld Place. That is why everyone was perplexed as to how Harry could possibly be friends with someone outside of Hogwarts or the Order.

The second thing that Harry did that shocked everyone was openly defying Dumbledore in public...

"_I'm sorry, Harry. You must not have heard me correctly. This is unfortunately not a request." Dumbledore said._

"_I was fully aware of that Professor and my answer is still the same. I'm not done here yet, but I'll let you know when I am, ok?" Harry replied._

_Everyone's eyes turned to Dumbledore's awaiting his next action._

Albus Dumbledore was a very smart man. There was a reason he was considered to be the wisest wizard of the age. People who knew him personally often developed a newfound respect for him after they saw the way he could communicate with Harry and often get him to acquiesce whenever he was angry. He also had an uncanny ability to come out as the good guy in almost any controversial situation. The one thing that he wanted to avoid at all costs was a confrontation with Harry at a public venue. He didn't want to imagine what types of things the papers, magazines, and talk shows would come up with when they got their hands on a juicy Dumbledore/Potter scandal... Dumbledore decided to swallow his pride in front of the members of the Order who revered him, planning on taking care of his unfinished business with Harry in private...

"I understand, Harry. Would five more minutes be enough time for you to take care of your business here?" Dumbledore said, trying his best to fit into his clichéd kind-grandfather role.

Harry was stunned. He was hoping that Dumbledore would throw a tantrum or something to give him an excuse to retaliate. But since Dumbledore was being very polite, everyone in the bar was watching him, and most importantly, he didn't want Stacy to think that he was a _jerk_, he felt that he had no choice but to give in.

"All right, Professor. I'll try to be done pretty soon. Thank you."

Dumbledore's posture visibly shrugged with relief. A huge smile lit his face, and he was quite proud of himself for avoiding a potentially dangerous row with Harry. The rest of the people sitting at the table were stunned; they had never seen Dumbledore give in so easily to anyone before. However, before any of them, particularly Hermione, could analyze the event any further, Dumbledore approached the table and ordered butterbeer floats as a dessert for all of them.

Meanwhile, Stacy was incredibly impressed with Harry. She found him to be absolutely refreshing. Not only was he really hot, but she thought that his powerful shyness was quite a turn-on. He was extremely nice to her, and actually looked at her face when he talked to her, unlike the last three guys she dated. She was impressed with the amount of power he wielded, he had his own entourage that came with him to Diagon Alley! And if that wasn't enough, it seemed as if whenever he got into an argument, the great Albus Dumbledore himself comes to sort it out. She would definitely have to get on his good side!

Harry wasn't quite sure what to think of Stacy. He was definitely physically attracted to her, but who wasn't? In fact, he would pay 1000 galleons to any heterosexual male who said he didn't find her attractive under the influence of Veritaserum. She was also very nice to him. However, he doubted that she had the same values as he did. He considered things of a superficial nature to be unimportant, however, with models, it was the exact opposite. But he refused to judge this girl unfairly based on common stereotypes. He sure as hell wasn't going to hold this girl's beauty against her, especially considering the fact that she sought him out and was very nice to him. Harry decided that he definitely wanted to get to know this girl better.

"So, er, Stacy, it sounds like I need to be going now. I'm sorry we only got to talk for a minute."

"That's all right. It wasn't your fault. It was very nice meeting you. I'd like to see you again sometime."

Harry felt his mouth going dry. Did this beautiful girl just say that she wanted to see _him _again?

"Yeah, sure, I'd love to."

"OK, just owl me when you get a chance. In fact, here's my- wait one second." Stacy grabbed a napkin and wrote something down on it. "Here's my floo address, if you feel the need to drop by," she added with a wink.

Yep, Harry could really use a butterbeer right about now. He tried to gulp and restore some moisture to his mouth, since he didn't want to look like a complete idiot in front of her, which he was quite proud of himself for not doing so far.

"I'll try to owl you soon. I don't know when I'll be able to get out of the house, though. Dumbledore likes to keep me locked up."

"Don't worry about it, Harry. I'm sure we'll figure something out. I guess I'll see you later."

"Yeah, I'll see you later." And before Harry started to go back, Stacy came up to Harry and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

"Bye, Harry." And with that, she walked out of the pub, over dramatically swaying her hips for him to see. He could feel his face turning red, but tried to gather himself before turning around and walking back to the table.

As Harry approached them, he noticed that they were all staring wide-eyed at him. Hermione and Ginny were shooting him disgusted glares, while all the Weasley sons looked slightly jealous. The adults had collected themselves by now, and all of them had unreadable expressions. He looked to see Dumbledore's reaction, and found that there was no smile or even a twinkle in the old man's eyes. Wasn't this guy all about love and developing relationships? Why would he frown upon him perhaps getting a girlfriend? It just didn't make sense.

Harry was preparing himself for the storm that was about to hit full force. He knew that by meeting Stacy in front of all his friends and the Order, they would show some kind of response, he just didn't know how negative. He would soon find out...

"Harry Potter! Of all the stupid things you've done, this has got to be the..." Hermione started.

"Yeah, Harry, I didn't know blonde bimbos were your type..." Ginny added.

"Harry, what are you doing associating yourself with those kind of girls? What would your parents have thought? Honestly, Harry, I never that you of all people..." Molly yelled at him.

"Mr. Potter! I am extremely disappointed with the choices you made today. Whenever we leave _the house, _it is expected that you will obey all the adults! Professor Dumbledore won't be able to come with us and fix every tantrum you decide to throw. He is a very important man and doesn't have time to waste playing your childish games. You should know better!" Professor McGonagall said.

Harry was waiting for the chance to respond to all the insults being lashed out against him and his _new friend. _Dumbledore seemed to sense this, so he seized the next moment to speak.

"Harry, we will continue this discussion once we return _home. _Now, everyone put your hand on this butterbeer can. We might have to squeeze a little bit... The portkey will activate in three seconds."

And with that, they were all whisked away to Grimmauld Place.

I'm sorry it took so long to update guys. I should be improving though now that summer is here and I can devote more time to writing. Don't worry, Stacy will not be a Mary Sue. Her problems will be revealed in due time…If you get a chance, please leave a review. I really appreciate feedback. Thanks.


	5. Chapter 5

1As soon as everyone returned to Grimmauld Place, all the females felt the need to give Harry a piece of their mind. Hermione was scolding him about his rash actions and carelessness; Ginny was criticizing his taste in women; Mrs. Weasley was talking about the potential effects that being seen with Stacy would have on his reputation; and Professor McGonagall was again stressing the need to follow orders. Remus, Kingsley, and Alastor were silently standing in the corner watching Harry getting scolded, not hiding their amusement. At last, Harry finally felt that he had endured enough from them, and it was his turn to respond.

He was trying to remind himself that these people cared about him, even though he was doubting their intentions at the present moment. Who gave these people the right to make decisions concerning his personal life for him? Harry had never really acted outside of the world that the Order had created for him, and the second he did; he had three lions, four lionesses, and the king of the jungle ready to pounce on him.

Before he could fully control himself, he started snapping at the four women. "Hermione, what rash actions are you talking about? I had a freakin' drink with a girl. How is that hurting anyone? How is that careless? All I bloody did was talk to a girl! And Ginny, what do you care about what girls I talk to or potentially date? Hmmm?"

Hermione was used to Harry's temper tantrums, so this outburst was no surprise to her. She generally left him alone for a day or two to gather himself, give him the chance to realize that he was wrong, and then apologize to her. She decided to stick with this method again. After all, what business did Harry have prancing around with a glitzy, snooty, arrogant supermodel? She wasn't impressed by his romantic partner choices.

Ginny was also appalled at the way Harry was treating her. She blushed the trademark Weasley red when he asked her about why she would care about what girls he dated, come on- everyone knew she still had a crush on him! She could still remember the conversation she had with the Headmaster last year when he mentioned how much she and Harry reminded him of Lily and James. She couldn't believe the way Harry was talking to her, he had always been nice to her before this incident, and she was growing upset as she realized that she might lose _her _Harry to some dumb, good-for-nothing, bitchy girl who strutted around The Leaky Cauldron.

Before the spectators could recover from Harry's most recent outburst, they were shocked to find that he had started yelling at the two women whom he had always shown respect towards.

"Mrs. Weasley! I can't believe what you said to me! That shot about my parents was a low blow! I can't believe you would even say something like that. And how can you possibly judge someone based on a reputation that you have gathered from _Witch Weekly! _Don't you remember what the _Daily Prophet _was writing about me last year?" Harry said, getting louder and angrier as he continued.

By now, Mrs. Weasley's eyes were brimming with tears. She had a husband, six sons, and a daughter, and no one had ever talked to her like that. She had taken Harry in and made him one of her own, and this was the thanks that she was getting?

Harry continued his rant towards a totally unsuspecting target: Professor McGonagall. As the Gryffindor head of house, McGonagall had earned Harry's respect and quickly became one of his favorite professors.

"And you, Professor McGonagall!" Harry continued in a bitter tone, "You said that we were going to eat at The Leaky Cauldron for an hour or so before going back. What does it matter to you if I sit with you guys or a friend of mine? How is that not following orders?"

All of the women were ready to reply to Harry's angry accusations, but Dumbledore, who, as usual, appeared out of nowhere, took the chance to intervene before things got too ugly. He knew that nothing good could come out of fighting further, and he was afraid of the things that would be said if things really got heated.

"Ah, everyone, why don't we take a chance to collect ourselves. Harry, I wish to have a private word with you. We shall return in several minutes. Harry, shall we?" Dumbledore said kindly to him, angering the women present. Why was Dumbledore taking Harry's side? Couldn't he see how poorly Harry had been acting lately? Why was he encouraging this behavior?

Dumbledore led Harry down the hall and into the first room on the left. He quickly closed the door and cast a silencing charm upon it. Harry raised his eyebrows at this.

"Harry, I don't even know where to begin. I suppose I would like to start off by letting you know that I am immensely disappointed in your behavior as of late. I understand that you are under a great deal of pressure, perhaps more than any other child your age, and I am fully aware that it is quite common for teenagers to rebel, believe me, I was young once. However, a war is beginning and we must be united. Harry, you must understand, we are all on the same side. Is that clear?" Dumbledore said calmly.

"Yes, I know, no one here likes Voldemort. Blah, blah, blah. _Believe me, _I know that. I just don't see why everyone is making a big deal out of me having one drink with a girl? Why is that such a crime?"

"Harry, you must understand, we have your best interests at heart. We don't feel that it would be wise for you to be, how shall I put it, mingling with a girl of Stacy's stature. She has been involved romantically with some rather shady characters. You are asking for trouble. Do you want to be with the type of girl who has had more boyfriends in her life than detentions you have been given by Professor Snape?" Dumbledore said chuckling slightly, hoping that the Snape analogy would help clear the air.

Harry couldn't believe it; he had already had a similar conversation with Dumbledore in his office at the end of the year. Harry gathered himself and said to Dumbledore, "Professor, do you remember what we talked about in your office at the end of the year?"

"Why yes, Harry, I do. Do you have any questions regarding the prophecy?" Dumbledore said delicately.

":No, Professor, the other thing that we talked about. Don't you remember why you said that I wasn't named a prefect?"

Dumbledore was stunned. Why was Harry bringing this up now? Harry had previously seemed excited that his best friend, Ron, had won the honor. "Yes, I believe I do, Harry. I recall saying that you had enough on your plate at the time."

"Exactly! Professor, you made that decision for me. You should have asked me if I had wanted to be a prefect. You should have awarded it to the person that you thought was the most worthy. Not the person who it would be the most convenient for!" Harry shouted.

"Harry, I thought you were glad that Ronald was named prefect. Perhaps, if we talked to him, he would agree to surrender his badge..."

"No! I _am_ happy that Ron is a prefect. I really am. I just think that you should have asked me first, if you thought I was the most deserving of it!"

"Harry, you are not making any sense. We don't have time for these petty arguments."

"I'm making perfect sense! It wasn't your choice to decide whether or not I wanted to be a prefect. _Well, it was, but you know what I mean._ Do you do that for any other student? I should have been given the chance to decline the position."

"Harry, you are quite correct. I didn't follow the standard procedures, however, I think we both agree that you have never been an ordinary student. Let us not continue to bicker about these mere formalities. Is everything now in order?" Dumbledore conceded to Harry, he was sick of bickering over such trivial matters.

"No, professor, it's not! Don't you get it? You asked me if I wanted to date this girl with all these ex-boyfriends. You're right. It's probably a bad idea. But don't you see, it's my mistake to make. I need to make my own choices. You said it yourself, 'I find that I often learn the most from my own mistakes.'" Harry said, in an elderly tone, trying to emulate the Headmaster.

"But Harry, this situation is different. If we can foresee a disaster, why not try and prevent it?"

"Professor, you're just not getting it. I have nothing else to say to you." Harry said in a nasty tone.

And with that, he yanked open the door and started to leave.

However, he could hear Dumbledore say in a calm and collected voice, "Harry, in times of war, every decision we make must be for the greater good."

Well, here's chapter five. Please let me know what you think.


	6. Chapter 6

1What on earth was he supposed to do now? Harry managed to anger not only the Weasleys, Hermione, and several members of the Order, but Professor McGonagall and the Headmaster as well. Right now, things were not looking too good for him.

Deciding that he didn't want to argue with anyone at the moment, he went to the room that he normally shares with Ron during the summer holidays. He flopped onto the bed and buried his head in the pillows. A few minutes later, Remus Lupin knocked on his door.

"Come in," Harry mumbled.

"Harry, how are you doing?" Remus said, as he entered the room.

"I've been better," Harry replied, smiling slightly at the last remaining Marauder.

Remus had been puzzled by Harry's recent behavior. He had never acted like this before, however, he also realized that Harry was not the same person as his father. Still, Harry had never been one to engage in social activities with strangers, especially ones who were models on Witch Weekly's hottest list. It was so sudden and random that Remus couldn't logically deduce what was going on with him.

"So, Harry, how about you tell me what is really going on?" Lupin said, in the kindest tone possible.

"Nothing, professor, I'm fine."

"Harry, I'm not your professor anymore, so there is no need to call me that. Ok, then why don't you tell my why we saw you with Stacy Clearwater at the Leaky Cauldron?" Lupin replied, trying a more direct approach.

"I was having a drink with her. I was making a new friend. Why is everyone making such a big deal out of it?" Harry demanded, venting some of his frustrations out on Lupin.

"Well, first of all, do you know about her reputation? Do you know about some of the things she has done in the past? And how did you meet this girl anyway?"

"Yes- I do now, since you guys keep telling me about it and quoting from _Witch Weekly_. But, don't you get it, I don't care about her reputation or who she's been with, or whatever else she's done. I just met her for Merlin's sake! Why are you guys acting like I'm marrying her or something?"

"Harry, this is perhaps more serious than you think. We don't know what this girl's true motives are. And, Harry, I have eyes, too. I know what she looks like. I was talking to Kingsley and Alastor as well as Professor McGonagall and we all think that she might use her body to get you to do what she wants."

At this, Harry grew quiet and started to blush.

"Harry, I know you don't want to talk about it. But that won't make the problem go away. We all want to do what's best for you. Do you really need to hang out with this girl?"

"I don't know. I just met her. She seemed pretty nice and I'd like to get to know her better. Can't you just give me a chance to show you guys that I know what I'm doing and that this isn't that big of a deal."

"I'm afraid that it might be too dangerous, Harry. I mean, what does this girl want to do with you?"

That comment struck a nerve with Harry. He was having similar thoughts earlier, and he didn't like his fear being voiced by Remus.

"You're right, what would a stunningly gorgeous, nice, funny girl want to do with me?" Harry shouted, trying to get some of the anger out of his system, before storming out of the room. He was sick of everyone making such a big deal out of his meeting with Stacy.

Harry couldn't think of anywhere else to go, so he ran out the front door of Grimmauld Place. He was once again impressed by the stellar security. Hedwig, who was sitting on a nearby tree, flew towards him as soon as she saw him leave the manor. When she perched herself on his shoulder, he noticed that there was a letter tied to her leg. He quickly opened it, anticipating a letter from Stacy.

_**Harry,**_

_**It was really nice getting a chance to meet you earlier. I had a great time. I hope Headmaster Dumbledore isn't going too hard on you- if he is, tell him it was my fault, since I asked you to have a drink with me. I was hoping that maybe we could get together again sometime soon. I'm not busy tomorrow, would you want to meet at The Leaky Cauldron at around four? Let me know if you can.**_

_**Stacy **_

Harry was having trouble believing just how lucky he was. Did she say get together tomorrow? Of course he could make it! Who in their right mind would say no to this girl? He decided to risk receiving an owl from the Ministry of Magic for doing underage sorcery by using his wand to summon a quill and paper. He quickly jotted down a reply to Stacy.

_**Stacy,**_

_**It was nice meeting you, too. Dumbledore doesn't want me to see you for some reason, but it's my decision, not his. The only problem is that I'm going to have to sneak out. So yes, I'll meet you at the Leaky Cauldron at four.**_

_**See you then.**_

_**Harry**_

"Hedwig, can you deliver this to Stacy Clearwater as fast as you can?" Harry asked his owl. She gave a hoot which Harry took as a yes, and then quickly flew off into the rapidly darkening sky. Having had enough time to relax and slowly tame his anger, he went back inside the house.

When he entered the kitchen, he saw that two more Weasleys were present, Bill and Charlie. He noticed that Tonks had shown up, too. Dumbledore, McGonagall, Lupin, Moody, and Shacklebolt were still there as well. He could tell from the troubled expressions on all the rooms' occupants that they were mad at him.

He was going to leave the kitchen when he heard Dumbledore say, "Harry, do you mind if we have a quick word?"

Harry warily turned around and sat down in the only remaining chair. He really didn't want to hear anyone else complain about his currently nonexistant relationship with Stacy, but he decided to listen to what they had to tell him anyway.

Moody was the first to speak up. "Potter, did you know that Voldemort hired seventeen wh-...erm, scarlet women, during the first war, to try and get prominent ministry officials to divulge information? Don't you understand what a bloody idiot you're being? Why don't you just put your wand in your back pocket and call it a day?" he barked.

"What makes you think that Stacy is a death eater? She's just a freakin' teen model. How does that make her a death eater?"

"Come on, Potter, constant vigilance, it's rumored that her cousin is in Voldemort's inner circle. That alone should be enough to tell you to stay away from her!"

"So what, that doesn't mean that _she _is a Death Eater! And you don't even know if her cousin really is a Death Eater. I can't believe that you have the..."

"Harry, this bickering will get us nowhere," Dumbledore interrupted. "After discussing this with your friends and the Order, we feel that it is best for you to stay away from Miss Clearwater. As such, you will unfortunately not be able to leave the house unless you were to agree to stay away from her."

Harry couldn't believe what they were doing. He was once again stumped as to why no one wanted him to go near this girl. After all, despite the fact that she was currently receiving bad press, he had heard Ginny tell Hermione that she was still a very popular figure in the wizarding world and was considered any teen guy's ideal date. And he could see why.

However, he now had a new problem to deal with. No one from the Order wanted him to go near her. Although he thought that they were all being complete gits about the whole thing, he knew that they wouldn't listen to logic and would stick by Dumbledore's decision.

He agreed to comply with their demands, that is- staying in the house for the rest of the summer, and he returned to his bedroom to think about the following day. He was definitely going to try and meet Stacy at four, the only problem was trying to do it without raising the Order's suspicion.

It's not like Ron, Hermione, or Ginny would cover for him so he could go see her. And judging from the looks Fred and George were giving him earlier, he doubted they would help. His only options left were the two elder Weasleys. He didn't know Bill and Charlie too well, and if they said no, they would probably tell another member of the Order and his plan would be foiled.

He lay in bed for the rest of the night thinking of ways to escape tomorrow to go and see Stacy...

A/N: Here's a short chapter; I just wanted to get something out. As usual, please let me know what you think of the story and leave a review.


	7. Chapter 7

1Harry woke up at roughly five in the morning. And it wasn't because Voldemort was trying to infiltrate his mind, or because he was having nightmares about the Department of Mysteries incident again. No, the reason he couldn't sleep was because he was thinking about his upcoming "date" with Stacy Clearwater.

Harry had to fight a battle on two fronts. First, he had to somehow meet Stacy at four. It sounded simple enough, but when you had to get by one of the most powerful wizards in the world and his small army, things would tend to get a little difficult. Practically every member of the Order took a harsh stance against Stacy, judging her before they even met her. They reached conclusions about her based on who her cousin was, something that she had no control over, and what _Teen Witch Weekly_ said about her, which is exaggerated to sell more copies.

And the other thing he had to worry about was his actual date with Stacy. What was he going to talk to her about? What if he said something stupid? What if he made her mad? What if she didn't want to see him again? Harry didn't want to continue down this dangerous line of thought, it seemed that the more time he spent thinking about his impending date, the more nervous and anxious he became.

Harry snuck out of his room, silently crept down Grimmauld's stairs, and entered the kitchen. He turned the light on, which due to the sharp contrast of the darkness that he had grown accustomed to to, burned his eyes out. He fixed himself a glass of water before turning the lights back off. He sat in the corner sipping his water, continuing his earlier musings about the upcoming day.

Harry could hear footsteps coming down the stairs, and a few seconds later that person turned on the kitchen lights, before proceeding to drop whatever was in his hand and curse rather crudely. "Blimey, Harry, what the hell are you doing up this early. You just about scared the crap out of me!" he said.

"It's nice to see you too, Bill. What are you up to?" Harry replied, smiling at the eldest Weasley.

"Nothing much, I just got to work early at Gringotts this week because Jeff- he's another curse breaker, is on vacation. But why are you up?"

"I couldn't get any sleep. I'm just worried about...you know..."

"Yeah, actually I wanted to have a talk with you, Harry. What did you do that's making Dumbledore so worried. He called a meeting yesterday, as you know, to talk about some chick you're dating or something. Care to explain?"

"Jeez, you wouldn't believe how crazy Dumbledore is acting about it. The other day, I met Stacy Clearwater, who-"

"Whoa Harry, slow down there. Dumbledore couldn't tell us, but where'd you meet a babe like her?"

"Well, you know when I went to Diagon Alley with your family, Hermione, and the Order?" At this, Bill nodded his head for Harry to continue. "So I went into Honeydukes or something, and Stacy came up to me and introduced herself, and asked me if I wanted to have a drink with her at the Leaky Cauldron. So, I accepted, and when she met up with me, everyone started freaking out. I don't get it."

"Well, I would say that you caught them off guard, Harry. I mean, I don't think they expected you to know the hottest teenaged-chick in Europe. And she's somewhat of an unknown to everyone in the Order, it's not like Dumbledore is hanging out with pretty young girls at Wizengamot meetings," Bill said, causing Harry to laugh at the mental picture that formed.

"Yeah, I guess you're right, but still, did you hear what Dumbledore said to me. I can't leave the house until I swear that I won't go and see her."

"I don't know what that was all about myself. Maybe he knows something about her that we don't. He did seem to come down a little harsh on you about it."

"Well, Bill, if he knows something about her, he should probably at least tell me so I can understand why he's acting like a jerk. I mean, can't I just hang out with someone without it causing a civil war here? Actually, I've got a favor to ask of you."

Bill appeared surprised by this, since he had never talked to Harry much before this. "Well, go ahead," he replied curiously.

"First of all, do you have any problems with me going out with Stacy or anything?"

"Not really. It's none of my business who you choose to date or not to. I just don't want her to do anything to you that would make you regret this whole thing. It's your risk to take, I just hope you know what you're doing. So what do you need?"

"I got an owl from her yesterday, and she asked me to meet her at the Leaky Cauldron at four o'clock today. I told her yes, but I have no idea how I'm going to get passed Dumbledore and everyone. Is there anyway you could help me out?"

"Harry, when I was at Hogwarts, I was a prefect and then became the Head Boy. I am now a member of the Order and have to answer to Dumbledore directly. Do you realize how much trouble I would be in if I got caught?" He paused for a few seconds for dramatic effect, enjoying the somewhat scared look on Harry's face, before continuing, " Hell yeah, of course I'll help you out." He then quickly turned serious, " But one thing though, if you get caught, I will make sure that the rest of your stay here is miserable. Got it?"

Harry gulped, wondering just how much of Fred and George was in Bill. However, regardless of the threat, he couldn't help but smile now that he had an ally in his plan to meet Stacy. With an official adult now on his side, the seemingly impossible task of meeting Stacy now appeared more probable.

"Ok, thanks, Bill, that helps me out a lot. I promise we won't get caught. So what should we do?"

"Let's see, I get off work at a little after two today. So we'll have to come up with a reason to take you away from the house, and it's got to be a reason why you would come with me. We're going to have to take you to Gringotts, because no other place would make sense. What do you want the reason to be?"

"I don't know, let's just say that I want to visit my vault. And if they ask for details, I'll just tell them that I want to take some galleons out and to check the balance. Would that work?"

"Probably. The only problem that I can see is if Dumbledore wants someone to accompany you besides myself. Plus, I'm not sure how much time it will give you with that Clearwater girl, because if you're gone for longer than, say, thirty minutes, they'll probably get suspicious."

"Oh, crap, I didn't think of that. I guess I won't have that much time, then. Is Dumbledore supposed to come here today?"

"Yeah, I think he's having a meeting at noon or something. I obviously won't be able to make it. If he's still here around 3:30 or so, then we'll have to ask for his permission to take you. But since he'll probably be gone, we'll just have to get through mum which should be easy enough. Anyway, I got to get to work now, Harry, I'll talk to you about it later."

"All right. Bye, Bill."

- - - - - - - 3:45 P.M. - - - - - - -

"Bill, I thought you said that the old coot would be gone by now," Harry whispered slightly disdainfully to Bill, while gesturing with his head to Dumbledore, who was talking with several members of the Order in the kitchen.

"I know, Harry, you don't have to remind me. Normally the meetings are about two hours at the longest, and usually everyone is gone within twenty minutes following it. I have no idea what is taking Dumbledore so long to talk to them," Bill replied.

"For the most important man in the wizarding world, he sure has a lot of free time to chat," Harry said sarcastically.

"Yeah, I guess this is going to be a little bit harder than we initially thought. But there's always a chance that Dumbledore might say yes if we word things right. Just try not to mess this up too badly."

Harry and Bill both walked into the kitchen, and greeted Dumbledore, Tonks, Moody, and both the Weasley parents.

"Hi, Professor Dumbledore, how are you doing?" Harry said, in the nicest genuinely sincere voice he could muster.

"Good afternoon, Harry, I am indeed doing well. How are you faring?" Dumbledore responded.

"I'm doing pretty good. Thanks. Umm, there's just one thing I wanted to ask you. Is there anyway I could go to Gringotts today, Professor?" Harry asked.

"Potter, do you have any idea how stupid and foolish, not to mention how dangerous it would be for you to be–," Moody interrupted, before being cut off by Dumbledore.

"That is all right, Alastor. I believe I can take it from here. Harry, is there anything specific that you need to attend to at Gringotts that couldn't be done at a later date?"

"Umm, I'm not sure, I just need to check some stuff in my account and make a withdraw. Is that ok?"

"Well, I suppose we can arrange for you to visit the wizarding bank, assuming we can have someone chaperone you there."

At this, Bill piped up, "Headmaster, I could take him. I'm free for the rest of the afternoon, and I wouldn't mind having a little chat with Harry as well."

"Very well. Harry, you may go to Gringotts with Mr. Weasley. I doubt I shall be here when you get back. Before you depart, are you sure that there is nothing else that you wish to tell me?" Dumbledore said, giving him a penetrating gaze, the likes of which Harry hadn't seen since his second year.

At this point, Harry realized that Dumbledore _knew _he was lying. However, he was puzzled because if Dumbledore knew that he wasn't being truthful, why would he let him go to Gringotts? The previous evening, he had said that Harry was not allowed to leave the house unless he promised not to meet Stacy, then why would he let him leave the house so easily? It just didn't make sense.

"Yes, Professor, I'm sure."

"Very well, then, Harry. I shall see you later, I assume. Please do be careful."

"I will, sir. I'll see you guys later," Harry added, as he and Bill left the house.

A/N: A special thanks to Phoenix Dust for being a Beta for both of my stories. Well, there you go, not too much action. The next chapter should be pretty good, there'll be some serious action and surprises at the end of it. As usual, please take some time and leave a review. It's always good to read some feedback to see if people like the direction that this story is going in. Thanks.


	8. Chapter 8

1"I can't believe we got away with it," Harry commented to Bill, as they were appearing in Diagon Alley.

"Yeah, me neither, that was almost _too _easy," Bill responded. It was two or three minutes before 4:00. Bill continued the conversation, "Ok, here's what I'm thinking. It's about four o'clock right now. I'll give you roughly thirty minutes to do what you gotta do with Stacy and then we'll have to go; no arguing about it. Am I clear?"

"Yeah, I got it," Harry replied, preparing to enter The Leaky Cauldron.

"I'm going to stay out here and cover for you. When I come in, it's time to go."

"Thanks a lot, Bill, I really appreciate it," Harry said, and then left Bill to enter the small building.

As soon as Harry entered, he immediately caught sight of Stacy. _Good lord, _she was even sexier than the last time he saw her. She was wearing very, _very _tight jeans that caused Harry to wonder just how she managed to fit her slim physique into them, among other things... He also noticed the strapless green top that she was wearing to emphasize her circular assets, causing Harry's blood to flush to the southern part of his body. Just how the heck was he supposed to have a rational conversation, let alone form basic thoughts, while in the presence of this golden goddess?

She apparently also saw Harry, since she immediately rushed forth from her seat at the bar and enveloped him in a very _intimate _hug. She wrapped both of her arms around his shoulders, put the rest of her body as close to him as was physically possible, and then whispered into his ear, "I didn't think you were going to make it. I've missed you, gorgeous."

Wow! Harry had surely never been greeted like that before in his life! If any girl at Hogwarts had ever done something like that to him just a day after meeting him for the first time, he would have thought that she was a boy-who-lived fan, and then he would probably shrug her off, and then stay as far away from her as he could. However, Stacy Clearwater, Britain's _hottest_ inhabitant _apparently_, was surely an exception, right?

Releasing her very sensual grip on him, Stacy said, "I can't believe we're finally together, _alone." _However, as she mentioned this, Harry tilted his head in the direction of the ten to twenty bar patrons who were all gazing at the two of them, mostly with awe-struck expressions at seeing two of the most famous people in the world in the same rather ordinary bar together. "Ok, not entirely alone, but it was a lot better than having all your friends breathing down our necks the whole time yesterday!" Stacy added, giggling.

She grabbed Harry's hand and led him over to a booth in the far right corner of the room, hoping to achieve some semblance of privacy. Harry and Stacy both had to sign a few autographs on the short walk over, and then they were finally able to sit across from each other in the surprisingly comfortably-cushioned booth.

"So Harry, how has Headmaster Dumbledore and all those people been treating you since they found out about the two of us?"

"The two of us?" Harry repeated her words, with a sly grin.

"You know, that we're, you know..." Stacy replied, while her face was turning a pretty shade of red. Harry was very proud of the fact that he managed to make her blush, it was definitely a step in the right direction.

"Uhh, yeah, I don't know how to put this nicely, Stacy, but... they don't like you. But don't worry, I don't care about what they think; they're a bunch of elitist bigots if you ask me." Stacy's troubled frown upon hearing about their immediate dislike of her changed when Harry told her that their opinions didn't matter to him. Maybe she still had a chance with him!

"Oh God, I can't believe it! Why does everyone have to make judgments about me before they even get to know me! They just read mostly made-up or exaggerated stories in those damn gossip magazines and think it's true! It's a shame- people believe everything they read, and there's basically nothing you can do about it." Stacy ranted.

"I know exactly what you mean," Harry agreed, "you've probably read some pretty nasty things about me, too. I once read something that said I was a vampire with a secret ambition to bomb Gringotts, start my own centaur army, and then move to Iceland. Haven't you ever wondered who comes up with these wacky ideas?"

Stacy lightly laughed at Harry's brief synopsis, "I know! And that's not the worst of it, did you know that there are absolutely no legal rules right now that hold journalists responsible for what they write. So they can pretty much say whatever they want, and we can't do anything about it! And it's not like the _Daily Prophet _has any serious competition; they can just write about whatever they want to sell papers! How fair is that? And the same thing goes for _Witch Weekly_, too. So anyway, Harry, to switch topics, what are you going to do about the Dumbledore problem?"

"I have no idea. That's going to be a tough one. I mean, he like knows and controls just about everything. And if he doesn't want you and me to be together, it's gonna be very hard to...overcome it," Harry trailed off, as he watched Stacy play with a golden curl that was in front of her eyes. _Jeez, just to emphasize the point in case you somehow missed it, she was very attractive!_

Stacy, completely unaware of Harry's current trance, said, "Yeah. I don't know what we're going to do there. I mean, if we ever want to get a chance to _really _get to know each other, then meeting randomly in _The Leaky Cauldron _isn't going to be the answer. Where is it that you live, again?"

"With Dumbledore," Harry said bluntly.

"Huh?" Stacy said, surprised by Harry's revelation.

"Well, actually, I live in this secret house that Dumbledore watches... It's supposed to _protect me,_" Harry said with disdain, and this didn't escape Stacy's notice. "And technically, he doesn't live there, but he just happens to be there all the time and he, and like twenty other people, monitor my every move, making it difficult for me to do anything. In fact, it was a near miracle that I was able to meet you here today." Harry finished.

"So I'll take it that you're not _too _happy living there, then?" Stacy summarized.

"Well, that's a major understatement. It's absolutely horrible. My summer vacations are anything but fun. In fact, it's so bad that I actually enjoy being in school more..."

Stacy interrupted, "Hey Harry, I've got an idea. Why don't you come live with me at my house? It shouldn't be too hard talking my parents into it. My dad's been a huge fan of yours since forever; when I told him that I met you yesterday- that was about the most excited I've seen him since I landed my big butterbeer advertising gig last year. And my mom likes you too, and she's been trying to get me to find a suitable husband since I was about three." Stacy blushed again, realizing what she had just said. She also noticed how Harry's eyes bugged out when she mentioned the suitable husband part, and she mentally slapped herself on the head for being so forward with him. He must think I'm the biggest floozy in the world, she thought. To try to make up for her slip of the tongue, she decided to go all out, and said, in the most seductive manner possible, in an attempt to slightly diffuse the situation, "And of course, I'd love to have you, too."

Damn! Harry was thanking whatever deity had desired for Stacy Clearwater to enter his life. She was certainly making things interesting. Did she mention the word _husband _somewhere? He wouldn't consider himself to be that lucky; even though he had only known her for a total of two days and still couldn't fully conclude as to what type of person she was. And did she say _I'd love to have you, too? _And did she really mean that, or was she just merely flirting lightly with him? But surely she didn't invite other boys to live with her, did she? And surely Ginny or Hermione would have mentioned it if she had a live-in boyfriend in the past, wouldn't they have? Things were certainly getting confusing quickly; while meanwhile Harry was waging this quick subconscious war with himself.

"Isn't it kinda hard for a minor to legally change his place of residency or whatever?" Harry asked.

"It shouldn't be. You'd just probably have to get a couple of things signed. That shouldn't be too difficult. Just have the Headmaster or whoever's in charge of you sign it, and _voila!_, you'd be living with me. How awesome would that be?"

"Umm, Stacy, have I mentioned to you yet that Dumbledore is a very powerful, very controlling man who likes to watch every single move that I make? How on earth am I supposed to get him to willingly do something like that?" Harry countered.

"Oh, I didn't think of that. I guess that idea wouldn't work out then. What if you just left that place you're staying at, and came and lived with me?"

"Don't you think your house would be the first place Dumbledore would check if I were to go missing?"

"You're probably right, Harry, but, my parents own a summer villa in Ireland. It's one of the nicest places you'll ever see. I could probably talk my parents into letting you and me stay there for the rest of the summer. And I can also get them to keep quiet about it too, so neither Dumbledore nor any of your friends could find out about it. How cool would that be?"

"That would be amazing. And plus, it's not like things could get any worse for me at the place I'm staying; they already keep me locked up most of the time and watch my every move. The only thing is, if we get caught, that's it! I probably wouldn't be allowed to see you until I'm a legal adult. So when do you want to try this?" Of course, unbeknownst to Harry, he would be a legal adult on July 31st when he turned 17. However, he forgot about it (the one time it was mentioned to him) and he just automatically assumed that he was an adult when he turned 18, just like in the muggle world. Of course, neither Dumbledore nor anyone else did anything to correct this impression that Harry had.

"Well, I'll have to check with my parents to make sure it's ok, first. I've also gotta finish my modeling gigs up here in the next week or so before I get to go on my vacation. It would be really hard to keep things secret if I had to come out in public and go to work. They would find out where you were for sure! I'm so excited, I can't believe we're actually going to do this!"

"I know, if we can pull this off, this will definitely be the best summer ever!" Harry responded with a wink, hoping to return the flirting a bit.

Stacy, of course, fell for it and started to lightly blush again. She started rambling, "Here's what I think we should do, Harry. I'll try to talk to my parents over the next couple of days about letting you and me go stay in Ireland for a couple days...Ideally, they'll probably want to meet you first, although I'll try to explain to them how urgent the situation is. They're usually pretty good about those types of things. Plus, my dad really hates Dumbledore, so it should be easy enough to talk him into helping you out. But my mom is a big Dumbledore fan, so it'll be a little bit harder convincing her. I'll try and owl you in the next week or so, as soon as I know what the plan is, and then we can start working out the details by owl. Would that work for you?"

"Yeah, sure. It's not like I've got any other options," Harry added jokingly, while smiling the whole time. "It sounds like a great idea."

"Yeah, how much longer do we have to talk?"

At this, Harry looked around The Leaky Cauldron to see that a small minority of the people were still staring at him, but mostly ogling at Stacy in her sexy attire. He also noticed Bill doing some wild hand motions, trying to get Harry's attention, indicating that it was time to leave. Harry looked at the clock and did the quick math to realize that he had been with Stacy for forty minutes.

"My bad, Stacy, I was supposed to leave ten minutes ago. I sort of lost track of time. It looks like I'm going to have to get going."

"That's too bad, Harry, things were just starting to get fun." At this, Stacy leaned across the table to give Harry a quick kiss on the lips. "I guess I'll see you later then, babe. I'll miss you." Stacy quickly got out of the booth and left The Leaky Cauldron, leaving Harry in a daze after Stacy's memorable farewell. Did she just kiss me _and _say that she was going to miss me? Man, this _has _been my lucky day.

Coming back to his senses, Harry looked around the Leaky Cauldron trying to locate Bill. He gave a quick jolt when he heard a voice coming from the spot right next to him. "I certainly wish those Gringotts tellers were that friendly to me. Hmm, I suppose I always select the wrong line. Hello, Mr. Potter, and might I add, _Oh, what a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive_." That voice belonged to none other than Hogwarts' great Headmaster, Albus Dumbledore.

A/N: For those of you who were wondering, I'm not dead and I haven't abandoned either of my two stories. I'm sorry it has taken about three months to get this out, that's just terrible on my behalf. I'll try to do better in the future with quicker updates. If it's any consolation, this has been the longest chapter so far by a few hundred words. Also, for those of you who have been asking, Stacy Clearwater will in no way be related to Penelope Clearwater. I thought I was being clever and original by devising that last name, and of course that ends up being the last name of a Harry Potter character! Hopefully, I'll get a few more chapters out soon, but we'll see what happens. Happy New Years to everyone, and please do me a favor, and try to be somewhat responsible while you're having fun. Please leave a review if you get a chance. Thank you.


	9. Chapter 9

"Professor Dumbledore, I can explain. I was on my way to Gringotts, and I got thirsty, so I came into…."

"Please, Harry. This is no time for fabricated excuses. We both know what happened here," the Hogwarts Headmaster replied.

"Listen, Professor. I apologize for lying to you, but I am not sorry for seeing Stacy. She's a wonderful girl, and I want to get to know her better. I don't interfere with your personal life, and I think you should give me the same courtesy. I don't want to spend all summer locked up in Grimmauld Place, and I don't think I'm asking for too much here," Harry retorted.

"Yes, indeed, Mr. Potter. I do realize I have scarcely attempted to accommodate you this summer, and for that, I ask your forgiveness. Perhaps we can arrange for you to meet Ms. Clearwater at a mutually agreed upon time under the presence of the Order?"

"I guess that would work, Professor. I just want a little privacy in my life, that's all," Harry said just to appease Dumbledore, knowing that he would soon be plotting an escape from Grimmauld Place and the clutches of Dumbledore himself.

"Yes, yes, Harry. We'll work out the logistics later. But for now, we must be on our way. I just have one more question for you," Dumbledore added.

"Yes, Professor?"

"What would be an appropriate punishment for jeopardizing your safety with a blatant lie?"

"Ummm, well, I think….." Harry stammered.

"Harry, perhaps I have not stressed enough the danger facing you that lies ahead. But alas, that is a discussion for a later date."

And with that, Dumbledore whisked Harry away from the confines of the Leaky Cauldron, taking them back to Grimmauld Place a few moments later.

They landed in the kitchen, several feet away from Mrs. Weasley. Noticing Dumbledore's presence and the absence of her eldest son, she immediately exclaimed, "Harry! Albus! Is everything all right? Where's Bill?"

"No worries, Molly. I trust that Bill will be returning shortly. There was a slight miscommunication between Mr. Potter and myself, which has been corrected."

"Well then, Harry, Albus, please sit down, and I'll fix you something to eat. It will just take a minute…"

"I wish I could, Molly, but I really must be on my way. I'm sure young Harry here would love a bite to eat. Good day." After a nod towards Molly and a wink at Harry, Dumbledore once again disappeared.

"Well, Harry, how was Gringotts? Did you get everything you needed?"

"Yeah, Mrs. Weasley, everything's fine. What's for dinner?"

"Of course, Harry. You must be starving. I'll be fixing some chicken, corn, and mashed potatoes. How does that sound, Harry dear?"

"That would be perfect, Mrs. Weasley," Harry replied.

Ron, Hermione, and Ginny entered the kitchen. "I knew I smelt something. Dinner!" Ron bellowed as he entered the kitchen, clearly prepared for the evening's supper.

"How did everything go at _the bank," _Hermione asked, with a clearly knowing look.

Why did everyone think Harry was lying? "Well, you know, it was good. I got to check on some stuff, and now I'm done with that," Harry replied curtly, demonstrating his irritation with this line of questioning.

"Hey Harry, I was wondering, would you like to take a walk with me in the backyard after we're done with dinner," Ginny shyly asked.

"Yeah, we'd love to," Ron replied, in between gulps of food already.

"Ron!" Hermione said in exasperation at Ron's thick-headedness, "I think we need to do some cleaning in the attic. Don't you remember what Professor Moody asked us to?"

"Bugger, Ginny, we can't. 'Ol Mad-Eye wants us to go through some stuff in the attic, we're supposed to be looking for something."

The small-talk at the dinner table continued for another ten minutes or so, and then Harry excused himself from the Weasleys and Hermione. "I think I'm going to go in my room for a little while. I'll be back a little bit later," Harry said, and then headed down the halls of Grimmauld Place.

Noticing that the portrait of Mrs. Black was covered up, Harry exhaled in relief, glad that he was able to walk through the hallway in peace without any distractions for once. As soon as he entered his room, Harry saw Hedwig perched at the top of his bedpost, with a letter in her mouth. Harry immediately knew who it was from.

_**Harry,**_

_**I hope this letter finds you well. I really enjoyed meeting with you today, and I can't believe how much I've come to like you in the short time we've known each other. I talked with my parents about letting you spend the summer with me in Ireland, and although they are not crazy about the idea, (they initially said 'no') I was able to talk them into it by threatening to quit modeling if they didn't let me. See, you're not the only one who has to deal with angry adults ;) However, I did have to agree to let them meet you before we go off together. Apparently, they want to make sure you're not as "batshit crazy" (to quote my dad) as the Daily Prophet makes you out to be. I was hoping that we could have dinner tomorrow night at my house, if that would be okay with you. Let me know what you think.**_

__

_** My affections, **__**Stacy**_

Well that certainly was a lot to digest! This Stacy Clearwater girl certainly doesn't mess around, Harry thought, noting that she was already offering the chance to live with her after only meeting him twice. Surely she couldn't have been like this with other guys, could she? Harry thought it was odd that Stacy's parents were letting her go off and spend the summer with a complete stranger, but then, Harry remember, they didn't exactly jump at the idea; Stacy had to make some threats first. It still seemed too good to be true. Harry couldn't believe that he would have the opportunity to spend an entire summer alone with a gorgeous supermodel in a beautiful villa. Who gets these kind of opportunities? The words of Alastor Moody came to mind, "_If it seems too good to be true, it probably is. Doubt anything you believe to be true." _A romantic philosopher, that Moody, Harry thought.

Grabbing a piece of parchment from his drawer, Harry penned a response.

_**Hey Stacy,**_

_**I had a good time at lunch today. I still can't believe we might be moving in together this summer. How do you want to arrange this meeting with your parents tomorrow? I might be able to bust out tomorrow night, but I can't make any promises. **_

_** Harry**_

After he sent Hedwig on her way, Harry started to reflect on the predicament he found himself in. Sure, he had the potential to get romantically involved with a gorgeous girl, but at what price? He was lying to his friends, The Order, heck- even the most powerful man in the wizarding world. And the past few days sure have been stressful to boot! He had to deal with trying to sneak out of Grimmauld Place again (so far 0 for 1), and he was also nervous about meeting Stacy's parents. What was he supposed to say to them? _Hi, Mr. and Mrs. Clearwater, I'm not nearly half as crazy as I look. I barely know your smoking hot daughter, but I'd nevertheless like to move in with her this summer, completely unsupervised if you don't mind, so I can try to shack up with her. _Yeah, he could see that going over real well. Can you say, awkward?

Before he could continue his musings further, Hedwig returned to the window with a piece of parchment in her mouth. Gee, that was fast! Harry opened the letter immediately, his eyes glazing over Stacy's response.

_**Harry,**_

_**Here's the plan. You take the floo to my house at 11:00 tomorrow night. I told my parents you would have a hard time sneaking out, so they're willing to have a late dinner. I also told them how miserable you were under house arrest, and that made them more sympathetic to your cause. If you can't make it tomorrow night, just let me know, and we can reschedule it for some other time. I really hope we can make this work!**_

_** Stacy**_

Before he could even start writing a response, Fred and George came bustling into his room.

"Harry, old chap, do you mind if we have a word with you," Fred, or it might have been George, said to him.

"Sure, guys. What do you want?" Before either of them continued further, Fred closed the door and George cast silencing charms on the entire wall before saying anything.

"Harry, we need to ask you a favor."

Authors Note: I know, I know. It's been far too long. Like over a year. Feel free to hammer me in the review box, I know I've been really lame. However, if it's any solace, I have the next chapter already written out, and I plan on posting it sometime next week. Hope there's at least a few of you left after my hiatus!


	10. Chapter 10

"Oh Lord. What did you two do this time," Harry warily asked the twins.

"Harry, old chap. It's not so much what we did, but rather, what we didn't do," George answered, and Fred quickly thrust a piece of paper into Harry's hands.

**To George and Frederick Weasley,**

**It has come to our attention that during the past fiscal year your business has generated over 34,509 galleons of gross revenue. As such, a payment of 13,203 galleons was due on March 17****th**** of this year. Since the department of taxation received no payment of any kind from your franchise, according to tax code 43-b, a 15 additional tax will be administered. That brings your total balance due to 15,183 galleons, due in full by July 17****th**** of this year. Failure to comply with the fair taxation laws could subject you to 3-10 years imprisonment. **

**Respectfully,**

**Jonathan Leonard Mugglebee, II **

**Ministry of Magic, Chief Minister of Corporate Taxation**

"And I take it that you two boys don't have the money," Harry asked, arching his eyebrows.

"Not quite. We have a little more than 5,000 galleons in the bank at Gringotts, but we need that money as a cash reserve to run Weasley's Wizard Wheezes," George added.

"Yeah, it's hard enough to run things as it is these days, no one told us we had to pay all these taxes on our stuff," Fred chimed in. "No Weasley has ever had the problem of running a business before. This is uncharted ground for us."

"Have you considered getting a loan to pay it off," Harry asked the twins.

"We went to Gringotts yesterday to see if they could help us, and the goblins offered us a 15,000 galleon loan, except we would have to pay 12 interest on it, and we would have to get either mum or dad to cosign on it, because of our 'credit risk,'" Fred said.

"And, of course, we don't want to do that," George lamented.

"So I'm guessing you want me to give you the money then," Harry concluded.

"Not just give, Harry. We fully intend to pay you back. And to prove it, we'd like to set up an automatic deposit of 1/3 of our profits into your account, forever," Fred commented, and George vigorously shook his head in the affirmative.

"Of course, guys. I'd be happy to help you out. I'd just like to ask one more thing in return," Harry said.

"Anything, Harry, old chum. What can we do for you," Fred added.

"Well, here's my plan. Remember that girl, Stacy Clearwater, that came into the Leaky Cauldron to have a chat with me," Harry started.

"No, Harry. We can't remember. There's so many gorgeous blonde supermodels that we see on a regular basis, we can't possibly remember which one you're talking about," George commented, in an attempt at humor.

"Okay, good. Well, I'm going to move in with her for the summer, and…"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Fred said, "I don't even want to know how you landed a babe like that. Not bad, Harry. Not bad. I guess our little ickle Harrykins is growing up after all."

"Yeah, well. Anyway, I'm trying to make the move tomorrow night, and I was wondering if you two could help me escape unnoticed," Harry mused.

"Wait a second, Harry. Are you asking us to deliberately disobey our parents, the Order, and Dumbledore?"

"Basically, yes." Harry countered.

"I don't know, Harry. That sounds pretty risky," George said. And after sharing a look with Fred, the twins said in unison, "We'll do it."

"Thanks, guys. I need to leave here a little bit before eleven o'clock tomorrow night. I have a couple ideas, but what do you think is the best way to make it happen?"

"It shouldn't be that difficult. The only people from the Order who should be here tomorrow night are mum, dad, and Remus, and mum and dad should be sleeping by then, and lord knows Remus has enough on his mind to worry about monitoring you, so I think you're in the clear. We'll cover up that bitch of a mum Sirius has, and it should be easy enough for you to sneak through the floo. Just keep a low profile tomorrow and act remorseful, and they'll be none the wiser," Fred rambled.

"That's what I was thinking, Fred. Just make sure they don't notice I'm missing until morning, and when they do realize that I'm gone, tell them I left on my own. I'd hate for them to worry that old Moldeywart stopped by in the middle of the night to kidnap me," Harry finished with a chuckle.

"Don't you worry about a thing, Harry, we'll take care of it," Fred said. And then George continued, adding a wink, "And, Harry, when you're with that Clearwater babe this summer, make sure you don't do anything we wouldn't do."

The rest of the evening passed without event, and the morning of Harry's planned departure soon arrived. He spent the entire day trying to act as inconspicuous and cheerful as possible, by being polite to Mrs. Weasley, goofing around with Ron, and "opening up" with Hermione. In short, they suspected nothing. The Order had a meeting that day, and Harry again kept a low-profile, and even exchanged a smile with Dumbledore, trying to artificially convey his acceptance of Dumbledore's wishes.

But once the night arrived, it was another story. Since Harry had hardly unpacked his belongings, he had no problem quickly getting all of his belongings together for his exodus from the Black family home. He had sent Hedwig off several hours previously to Stacy, just to confirm that he would indeed be arriving at her house around eleven o'clock.

Harry wanted to make sure that everyone was sleeping; he decided to check each person's room to make sure that no one was stirring. Harry imagined how catastrophic it would be if he got caught trying to leave- Dumbledore would probably put monitoring bracelets on him to make sure that he didn't go anywhere! As he looked around, he thankfully noticed that Fred and George had covered up the portrait of Mrs. Black. At least he wouldn't have to deal with that tonight!

He silently tip-toed towards the bedroom of Mr. and Mrs. Weasley. Opening the door just a creak, he could see that they were both in bed sleeping. He went next door to Lupin's room, and did the same thing. Harry sighed in relief. All the adults were accounted for! Just to be safe, he wanted to make sure that both Ron and Hermione were asleep as well.

As he approached Ron's room, Harry could hear his best friend's snoring from outside the door. No need to check on him! Now all he had to do was make sure that Hermione was sleeping as well. He approached her door, silently opened it up, and peered upon the visible outline of Hermione under the blankets. He had to admit, he felt a little guilty about the way he had treated his friends lately, and he started second-guessing his decision to leave them for the summer. But before he could feel _too _guilty, Harry envisioned himself spending the rest of the summer on a luxurious island with the most glamorous supermodel in all of Britain, and that helped make his decision easier. Harry needed to break off from Dumbledore, and this was his perfect opportunity to do so.

Resolute, Harry headed towards the secluded fireplace, looking for the floo powder. The fire was roaring, and the saucer that usually contained the floo powder was sitting there empty. Where on earth do they keep that stuff? After thoroughly inspecting the area around the fireplace, Harry was thinking about owling Stacy to ask her for floo powder, but eventually decided against it, not wanting to sound lame. However, right before he turned around, Harry heard a familiar voice say, "And just where do you think you're going, Harry?"

Author's note: Another update. Hopefully a rapid-fire of updates now and in the future will make up for the hiatus I took. I hope you like it so far!


	11. Chapter 11

"Pr-Pr-Professor Dumbledore, what are you doing up this late?" Harry shakingly asked the venerated Headmaster of Hogwarts.

"Why Harry, I was just about to ask you the same question," Dumbledore replied.

"Well you see, Professor, I was just, erm, looking around for something to read. I couldn't get to sleep."

"Please Harry, be an honorable young man. I find stretching the truth to be very unbecoming. What were your intentions this evening, exactly?"

"Professor, I'm sorry, but I find all these rules that you are placing on me to be incredibly unfair. Look, I'm not asking for a wild and exciting social life, but I do think that I'm not asking for anything too unreasonable. I want to be able to see some of my friends during the summer, and I refuse to just sit here all cooped up in this house for the rest of the summer."

"Harry, surely you are aware of the danger that you are asking me to place you in? When do you think Voldemort will strike? At time when you have the maximum privacy that you crave, of course. Now, I am perfectly willing to arrange for you to meet with your friends over the summer, but you must be willing to work with me."

To which Harry retorted, "Why should I even bother? Every time I try and do something on my own, all of your little Order cronies try to make me feel like I'm the most ungrateful, spoiled person in the world."

"Now Harry, please do not refer to the members of the Order in such a manner. They are doing their very best to protect you, please remember. And I apologize if I have been a bit unaccomodating, but I assure you, I have your best interests at heart," Dumbledore said. After a short pause, he continued, "And you have yet to answer my first question. What exactly were you planning on doing this evening, Harry?"

Having gotten caught by Dumbledore two times in a row, Harry was not about to pretend that he could outwit the old buzzard. But at the same time, he was not about to tell Dumbledore that he was planning on leaving Grimmauld Place for good- Dumbledore would surely place him on some form of house arrest for the rest of the summer, and Harry didn't want to take that chance so he decided that some mixture of truth and fiction would be the best in this situation.

"Well, Professor, I was planning to meet Stacy outside the Leaky Cauldron at eleven so we could hang out and have a good time, but I couldn't seem to find any floo powder to save my life around here."

At Harry's blunt honesty, Dumbledore began to chuckle and responded, "Yes, isn't always amusing how the must trivial of details can thwart the most meticulous of plans?"

"Ha, yeah, real hilarious, Professor," Harry said in a slightly sarcastic tone, trying to convey his frustration due to the arrangements surrounding his situation.

"Here is what I propose, Harry. Tomorrow afternoon, I shall stop by and we shall attempt to reach an agreement for the rest of the summer regarding _these_ visits. I am more than certain that if we both compromise, then we should certainly be able to reach a conclusions that is agreeable to both of us," Dumbledore concluded.

"Thanks, Professor. I'd like that. It's pretty late, I think I'm going to go to bed. Have a good night, Professor."

And before Harry could turn around, Dumbledore said, "Where are your manners, Harry? Shouldn't you alert Ms. Clearwater that you won't be able to meet with her this evening?"

"I, uh, yeah, I guess I probably should." At that moment, Dumbledore conjured up a small scroll and quill for Harry to use.

With Dumbledore looking over his shoulder, Harry quickly scribbled,

**Stacy, **

**I am so terribly sorry, but I was unable to get out of my**_** house**_** tonight to see you. I'll have to take a rain check on this one. **

**Hope to see you soon, **

**Harry**

Before Harry got a chance to run to his bedroom and grab Hedwig, Dumbledore summoned his phoenix, Fawkes, and attached Harry's short scribbling to the majestic bird's mighty talons. Dumbledore instructed the bird affectionately, stating, "Please take this to Ms. Clearwater as soon as possible. I believe she is at the Leaky Cauldron, isn't that right, Harry?"

Despite the fact that this was a bold-faced lie, Harry had no choice but to agree and nod his head in the affirmative. After Fawkes quickly disappeared, Harry said to Dumbledore, "Thanks for everything, professor. I think I'm going to head to bed. Have a good night."

"Why thank you, Harry. Do sleep well." As Harry headed back to his room, he couldn't help but feel troubled about Dumbledore's insistence on giving Stacy a common courtesy. What on earth could have been the old geyzer's motive? He had shown absolutely no interest whatsoever in Stacy previous to their last conversation, and Harry couldn't help but fear that Dumbledore was playing some kind of sick game with him. After all, Dumbledore didn't even attempt to punish him for trying to sneak out. In fact, it seemed like Dumbledore was rewarding him for flagrantly flouting the his authority and the rules of Grimmauld Place. Something seemed wrong.

Unfortunately, it was now almost 11:30, and Stacy as well as her family had been expecting him thirty minutes previously. Although Harry was sure that they would understand his difficulty in escaping from Dumbledore, he still felt bad about his inability to keep his commitment to Stacy. And even though it appeared that Dumbledore was intending to make Harry's stay at Grimmauld Place more enjoyable, Harry still couldn't help but feel _annoyed_ with his entire situation. The claustrophobic atmosphere at Grimmauld Place was driving him crazy, and he simply wasn't in the mood to deal with the tedious, overbearing nature of the Weasleys and members of the Order. He did like them a lot, but their lack of faith in his judgment was more than irritating. And plus, the thought of spending the rest of his summer at an Irish villa with the most gorgeous girl his age in all of Britain certainly had its appeal, too.

So Harry decided to go through with his plan to escape Grimmauld Place anyway. He grabbed a piece of parchment from inside his desk, took out a quill, and jotted down another note to Stacy.

**Stacy,**

**I am so terribly sorry that I am running late. I attempted to go through the floo at my **_**house,**_** but Dumbledore caught me. Just me luck, huh? Anyway, completely ignore the last letter I sent you. I lied and told the old coot that I was supposed to meet you at the Leaky Cauldron, and he was watching me as I wrote the letter to you saying that I couldn't make it. Sorry if I'm not making much sense right now, I'm just mad I keep getting caught! If you could please owl me some floo powder, that would be great, and I'd shoot over as soon as I get it. Will you wait up?**

**~Harry**

Satisfied with his short explanation and request, Harry handed the scrolled up parchment to Hedwig and instructed her to deliver it to Stacy's house as quickly as possible. He opened the window, made sure Hedwig got a sip of water before she set out, and then sent the owl on her way. As Hedwig set off rapidly into the night sky, Albus Dumbledore stood on the rooftop, with Fawkes perched on his shoulder, curiously gazing at the fluttering bird in the distance.

Author's Note: My apologies for the lack of updates recently. I will have a much longer chapter out soon hopefully. Thanks for sticking with me and please leave a review!


	12. Chapter 12

Stacy didn't quite know what to think. She knew that it was very difficult for Harry to get out of his house, but she also couldn't help but fear that she was being stood up. She had received an abrupt note from Harry explaining that he could not make it, and she disappointingly told her parents that the expected guest would not be arriving. Slightly depressed, she walked into her backyard and started to dip her toes into her pool as she thought about how to respond. Before she analyzed the events further, she spotted a snowy white owl emerging out of the midnight sky. Immediately recognizing the bird as Harry's pet owl Hedwig, Stacy couldn't wait to see what Harry had to say.

She quickly scanned over the letter, and then darted inside her house, looking for some floo powder. She grabbed several generous handfuls, tied them up into a sack, and then grabbed a piece of parchment from the living room and began writing.

**Harry,**

**Just got your letter. Here's some floo powder. Hope to see you soon. Remember, just say Clearwater Sand-Abergo when you get in the fireplace.**

**Can't wait.**

**Love, Stacy**

Stacy ran the letter to Harry's owl and sent it on her way. She was so excited- Harry was going to arrive at her estate in a matter of hours presumably, giving her several hours ALONE with the BOY-WHO-LIVED before her parents woke up... Maybe it wouldn't be such a bad night after all.

Meanwhile, Harry lay awake in his bedroom in Grimmauld Place awaiting Stacy's reply. He could not believe the dramatic direction his life was about to take, and although he was certainly frustrated with Ron, Hermione, Dumbledore and the rest of the gang, he was surely going to miss the comfort and stability that they offered. But that comfort could not overcome the betrayal Harry felt when he learned that Ron and Hermione were spying on him for Dumbledore, and he grew increasingly angry as he contemplated the fact that his two best friends in life had agreed to sell him out. Before his anger could boil any more, Hedwig returned with Stacy's reply and what appeared to be a sack of floo powder.

Harry quickly read Stacy's reply, grabbed his things which he had forgotten earlier (running into Dumbledore turned out to be a blessing in disguise, Harry thought!), and, with little reluctance, wove his way through the darkness until he found the fireplace. Without hesitating, he threw some floo powder into the fireplace, stepped inside, and said, "Clearwater Sand-Abergo" in the clearest voice he could muster. As he vanished into the fireplace, he could make out the distinct voice of Molly Weasley shrieking, "What do you think you're doing, Harry! Why I never…"

Harry arrived at the Clearwater residence safely. As he exited the fireplace, he could make out the sensuous form of Stacy dozing off in the living room. As he caught sight of her perfectly tanned and toned stomach, he couldn't help but wonder what kind of summer he was going to have with this girl. As he walked closer, Stacy's eyes fluttered open and, upon seeing Harry, she shot upright and immediately enveloped him in a tight hug.

"I can't believe you made it," Stacy said, in a much quieter voice than she would have liked, since it was almost 3 A.M. and she didn't want to wake her parents.

"Me neither, "Harry replied. "I got caught by Dumbledore the first time, and I didn't even make it out cleanly this time either. Mrs. Weasley, she's the mom of one of my friends- caught me on my way out and I know she's going to tell Dumbledore any minute now. And since Dumbledore knows that I'm trying to see you, I'm sure that this is going to be one of the first places that he checks. I'm sorry I got caught, but these people literally watch my every move. If we want to pull this off, we're probably going to have to leave soon."

Stacy, taking in everything that Harry had just told her, replied somewhat dumbfoundedly, "you mean, like tomorrow?"

"No, I mean, now. Dumbledore will probably be here within ten minutes. Is there a safe place we could go to where we won't get caught?"

"Well Harry, our summer villa in Ireland isn't connected to the floo. In fact, it isn't connected to much of anything really. Daddy likes to go there to relax and he doesn't like many distractions."

"Well, we've got to get out of here in the next few minutes if it all possible. At least, assuming you're up to spending your summer hiding from the most powerful wizard in the world," Harry finished with a grin, to add some levity to what was an otherwise grave discussion.

"Of course I want to spend the summer with you!" Stacy blurted out, before blushing ever so slightly and continuing, "But I'm just not sure where we could go. I mean, I have a decent amount of money on me- I just got paid from my last round of Butterbeer ads, and I'm sure that would hold us over for a little bit."

Harry, not wanting to feel like a freeloader, said, "I've got some gold on me, too. I say we find a place to stay tonight, and then we can find a way to get to your villa after that. But how should we handle your parents?"

"We can leave them a note. They knew you were supposed to come over soon, and I'm sure they'll be worried about me- in fact, I know they won't be cool with me running off like this, but as long as I owl them regularly and make all my modeling appointments this summer, they'll get over it. I hate to say it, but they're really excited about the fact that I'm spending time with you- they're happy for all the wrong reasons of course, but still, I'm sure they'd love to hear that we're getting closer, even if I make them a little mad…" Stacy trailed off.

"I understand, Stacy. I'm not mad or anything, it's not like you can help what your parents think. I just hope they don't hate me too much after this."

Stacy nodded her head and then went into the kitchen and was about to start writing her parents a short little letter as Harry said, "Now make sure you don't tell them too much. You've got to assume Dumbledore is going to be here soon, and we don't want to give ourselves away."

Once again, Stacy nodded her head in agreement and she wrote-

**Mum & Dad-**

**Harry just got here, and Professor Dumbledore wants him to return home. And since neither I nor Harry want him to get sent back home, we're heading out now. Don't worry, I'll be fine. I've got Harry for protection. **(Upon seeing this, Harry blushed.) **I'll talk to you soon.**

**Love, Beanie**

Upon seeing Harry's reaction to her nickname, Stacy said in a mock-threatening voice, "Don't say a word, Potter" and she quickly put the note on the kitchen table and ran up the stairs, whispering to Harry that she had to grab some clothes "really quickly" before they could head out. Thirty minutes later, Harry was growing anxious- he was confident that Dumbledore was mere seconds away from arriving at the Clearwater residence, and yet Harry felt uncomfortable about the prospect of heading upstairs to grab Stacy. Soon thereafter, she came back downstairs with a small piece of luggage, and said, "Sorry it took so long Harry, I wanted to make sure I had a little bit of everything."

Showing some manners, Harry grabbed Stacy's suitcase, and they headed outside into the pitch-black night. Harry could not believe his luck- Dumbledore had yet to appear.

A/N: Thanks for reading everyone. Please leave a review!


	13. Chapter 13

As he took his first steps into the midnight air, Harry simply could not believe the unbelievable trajectory that his life had taken in the past twenty-four hours. Here he was, with an absolutely gorgeous model who seemed to like him, and willing to escape from the clutches of Dumbledore, his friends, and even her parents- just to be with him! He still didn't know Stacy that terribly well, but he couldn't but admire the fact that she seemed to show much more loyalty towards him than his "real" friends ever did. Interrupting his musings, Stacy said, "So Harry, where do you want to go from here?"

"I don't know- I'd like to get far enough away from here that Dumbledore or anyone that's looking for us can't find us, but I know it's late, so I guess there are only so many places we can go to- and I imagine we'd be lucky if we could find anything. I wouldn't mind looking around for a bit, how tired are you, Stacy?"

"Well, I was dozing off earlier- but I'm wide-awake now, Harry, and I don't think I'll be tired anytime soon," Stacy replied, grabbing Harry's hand. Still unbelieving of his newfound luck, Harry wondered how everything was able to change so quickly- going from the jail-like atmosphere of his enclosure at Grimmauld Place to the boundless opportunities that lay ahead of him with Stacy.

They had been walking down the block for about five minutes, when, all of a sudden- Harry heard a familiar voice.

"Harry, is that you?"

"Parvati? Is that you? What are you doing here?"

"I live right over there- and I felt like going for a walk to get out of the house- it's so boring in there. But I feel like I'm the one who should be asking you that question. How's your summer been so far, Harry? And more importantly, what are you doing here?" Parvati asked, almost out of breath from the rapid speed at which she spoke, having been so caught off guard in stumbling upon Harry.

"Oh hey, Parvati!" Stacy interjected, and for the first time, Parvati noticed who Harry was with.

"Wait! Stacy! You know Harry? Harry, you know Stacy? And what are you guys doing with that suitcase? This is crazy!" Parvati rapidly replied.

Unbelieving of what the odds of them all knowing and running into each other at this late of an hour in this location must be, Stacy continued the frantically disjointed conversation by saying, "Parvati! I'm so sorry we haven't hung out lately! I've been working so much lately, and I just met Harry a couple days, and everything has been absolutely crazy around here since then. So I'm sorry about that! But yeah, we're trying to find a place to stay for the night."

"I see. I guess Mr. Clearwater doesn't want any boys spending the night at the house," Parvati replied, humorously shooting Stacy and Harry a mocking yet knowing look.

"Well it's not so much that as we need to try and get Harry to someone secure where we don't have to worry about people messing with us," Stacy continued.

"Well, why don't you guys just stay at my house for the night? It's so late, and I doubt you'd be able to find a decent place to stay now, anyway. Plus, our house is so boring right now- there's nothing to do, and I know my parents are dying to meet Harry."

At this, Harry blushed, but kept responded, "I'd feel bad imposing- I don't want to just barge in- plus, we probably need to get a little bit further away from here- just to be safe."

"I understand. But still, do you want to come over and grab a snack or something? It'll be a good chance to catch up!" Parvati interjected.

After sharing an agreeing look with each other, both Harry and Stacy decided they could afford to stop by Parvati's to hang out for a little while- after all, what were the odds of Dumbledore showing up at the Clearwaters, and then shooting over to the Patils?

The continued to chat for a couple minutes as they approached the Patil residence, which was just as impressive as Stacy's home. "So Parvati, is Padma home?"

"Yeah, but she went to bed like an hour ago. She went running for two hours this afternoon, so she was pretty tired all evening. Although I'm sure we can wake her up, it's not every day Harry Potter stops by!"

"Oh, that's okay, Parvati- you don't have to do that, just tell her I said hi."

"All right, I'm sure she'll be mad that we didn't wake her though," Parvati replied as the three of them took a seat around the kitchen table. "So, I gotta ask, how did you two get to know each other?"

"Actually, it's a crazy story- we've hardly gotten a chance to have any time together alone- we've either had dinner in public with everyone gawking at us or had to meet each other secretly," Stacy answered.

"Is it just because you two are so famous?" Parvati inquired.

"Well, I guess that's part of it," Harry answered, and continued, "But Professor Dumbledore hasn't really been a big fan of me trying to go out and see Stacy, so that's made things kind of hard. I dunno- I guess it's not the best situation for any of us right now."

"Why does Headmaster Dumbledore not like you, Stacy? Did you do something to him?"

At this, Stacy looked slightly hurt, so Harry quickly answered, "No, it's nothing like that. He just likes me staying at home all summer, so I can't get into trouble- and since Stacy and I like to go out and do stuff, Professor Dumbledore sees that as a threat to my safety, I guess. I'm guessing he'd probably dislike anyone I tried to hang out with outside my house, and I doubt it has anything to do with her," Harry answered, leaving out the Order's true concerns and grievances about Stacy, since he did not feel that it would help matters at all, and he wanted to make Stacy feel better.

"I see. So what are your plans now? Are you two staying together at Stacy's? I know your parents Stacy, and I can't see them being cool with that."

"Well, I don't know what we are going to do. Actually, my parents seem to like Harry a lot, even though they've never met him. But we just want to have a relaxing summer and get away from all this stupid stuff that is keeping us apart from each other- we can't even hang out without it being a big deal- and I think this will give us a chance to show that we're not just little kids anymore, but that we deserve to have a little bit of freedom. It just gets so annoying having to answer to someone for every little, small thing that we do, and we're sick of it, wouldn't you agree Harry?"

"Yeah- that's a bit of an understatement. I can't even owl Stacy without having to explain to ten people what I'm doing. I know there's a lot of danger out there with Voldemort and all that, but still- I think I can have a little bit of privacy when it comes to stuff like this," Harry answered.

"That's completely understandable. What do you mean you have to answer to ten people, Harry? I thought it was only Professor Dumbledore that you had to answer to. Is it more than that?" Parvati asked, inquisitively.

"Yeah, but nevermind. It's a long story. Basically, Stacy and I have been looking for a place to where we can just relax and have a fun summer, without having to worry about all the stupid stuff."

Parvati responded, "But isn't that dangerous, Harry? And plus, what would people think about you two living together? Won't that raise some eyebrows? I don't mean to intrude, but are you two like dating?"

At this, Harry and Stacy shared a look, turning slightly red. Stacy answered, "I don't know what people would think, but we're not exactly going to advertise the fact that we're living together- it might sound bad, I know- but hopefully it won't get out. Speaking of which, please don't mention this to anyone, Parvati," Stacy ended, intentionally not answering the question about the nature of her relationship with Harry, leaving it to him to answer if he so chose.

Harry added, "Yeah, please Parvati, make sure that no one knows about this. It could cause a lot of problems for us if people started reaching the wrong conclusions, and we'd really rather not have to deal with any added publicity or attention from the media or whoever if we can help it."

Harry, too, did not address the later part of Parvati's question, not feeling the need to define his relationship with Stacy in front of anyone else. "Of course, I'll keep it a secret. You know I will. I'm just trying to make sure that you've thought this all out before you make any big decisions."

"Yeah, we have thought about it, and we think this is the best-" Harry was cut off by a _Ding! Ding!_ sound.

"Excuse me for a second, let me see who's at the door. I'm surprised anyone would stop by this late." Parvati said, casually disappearing to the front of the house.

As Harry and Stacy began to wonder why someone would stop by at such a late hour, Parvati re-entered, and said, "Harry, I'm sorry. But there's someone here to see you."


	14. Chapter 14

"Uh oh, who's here Parvati," Harry asked, gulping slightly in trepidation.

"It's Professor Dumbledore, Harry."

"What, how is that possible? How could he have known to come here? If he's that good at knowing where I am, why does he need to keep me locked up all summer" Harry countered, as Dumbledore interrupted the room, causing Harry to pause in the middle of his stream-of-consciousness ramble.

"Why Harry, it was not courteous of you to leave Mrs. Weasley so abruptly without even a proper goodbye. She has been worried sick concerning your whereabouts, as we all have. And I do believe we must be getting back to the home, the hour is late," Dumbledore finished.

"With all due respect, professor," Harry gritted through his teeth, fully aware that he was speaking in front of Parvati, feeling somewhat of a need to keep up appearances, "I left the house with no intention of returning this summer. I would like to spend some time getting to know Stacy better, and you have not been accomodating of my only wish this summer. And so I had to make my own decision. So that's why I left. I'm not trying to make a statement here, I just have to do what's best for myself."

"Harry, are you aware of how selfish you are speaking right now? Sometimes, we must put aside our passions to"

Harry cut Dumbledore off before he could finish the statement, growing angry at his failure to communicate with the Headmaster, it was as if he had not comprenhended anything Harry was saying. "Yes, professor. I understand what you're saying completely. But I disagree with you. I have decided to spend time with Stacy, and that's the end of the story."

"Well, I see, Mr. Potter," Dumbledore responded, casting his bespeckled gaze in the direction of Stacy, "but perhaps we should no longer continue to burden Ms. Patil at so late an hour. I think we should continue this discussion at the house. Surely you could agree to that?"

"I'm not sure I trust you, professor," Harry countered, and at this, Parvati let out an audible gasp. Weren't Harry and Dumbledore supposed to be the closest of allies? The _Daily Prophet_ treated the two of them like one in the same. Everybody knew that! But Parvati was interrupted from here thoughts when Harry continued with, "but I'm not so sure that you will let me leave the house once we get back there, and I probably won't get to see Stacy again if you have your way."

"Perhaps we shall compromise then. Ms. Clearwater can accompany us home, and she can remain with us until we reach a mutual agreement in proceeding forward. Would that be amenable to you, Harry?"

"Umm, err, sure, professor. Does that work with you Stacy?"

"I don't know, Harry. Where would we be going? It's not like I can just leave my parents to be run off with your Headmaster…"

At this, Dumbledore intervened, "Well, Ms. Clearwater, it appears as if you are quite prepared for a journey. I suspect your parents are not expecting you in the near future," Dumbledore finished, nodding to her suitcase.

"Okay, professor. That's fine. We can talk about it at the house. But I'm not sure how much that is going to help."

"Hey, Parvati. Is that you? What's all that noise going on down there?" Mr. Patil said, groggily coming down the stairs, having awoken due to the noise in the kitchen. "Headmaster Dumbledore, to what do I owe this pleasure? I hope Parvati is not in trouble for anything."

"Oh no, Jeremius, all is well. I apologize for wandering in at so late an hour. Mr. Potter here was visiting your daughter, and I apologize for our rather unannounced presence."

"Please, Headmaster. The pleasure is mine. Couldn't I trouble you for a cup of coffee or a drink? I'm sorry my daughter has been such a careless host."

"Thank you for your kind offer, Jeremius, but we really must get going. And your daughter has been an absolutely lovely host. My apologies for interrupting your sleep. Enjoy the rest of your evening. Harry, Ms. Clearwater, we must be going."

It was at this moment that Mr. Patil first noticed Stacy's presence in the house. "Oh Stacy, I didn't even see you there. What are you doing here?"

"Long story, Mr. Patil. Ask Parvati. I gotta run!" And with that, Dumbledore, Harry, and Stacy left the Patil home and began to casually walk down the well-lit street.

"Well, Harry, Ms. Clearwater, I do believe it's time to return home and retire for the evening. We can discuss what to do in the morning after a good night's rest."

"What? No way, professor. You said that we could discuss it tonight when we got back. I don't want to wait any longer, giving you time to scheme and come up with lord knows what. I want to discuss it tonight, otherwise we're not going back."

"That is fine, Harry. I just thought you would prefer some sleep after the night's festivities to cool down and-"

"I'm just fine, professor. I'd much prefer we figure things out tonight. And do I have your word that you won't kick Stacy out of the house without my permission?"

"Of course, Harry. On my honor, I will not ask her to leave the house without your permission. My apologies, Miss Clearwater, but these are tense times, and we must do our best to ensure the collective security of all."

Before Stacy could get a chance to respond to Dumbledore's declaration, Harry responded, "Yes, but that doesn't mean you can't treat her with respect. Let's just head back now, and figure something out."

"Very well, Harry." Stacy, Harry, please grab a hold of my arm. We're heading back now. And with that, both Stacy and Harry grabbed on to Dumbledore's robe, and Harry could feel himself being transported through space until he arrived back at Grimmauld Place. Upon returning, Harry immediately wanted to check to make sure that Stacy made it through apparating with the Headmaster. But as Harry looked all around Dumbledore and the entry room at Grimmauld Place, a sinking feeling hit his stomach- Stacy wasn't there.


End file.
